Volunteer Spotlight: Michael Henry '06

When did you begin volunteering for Dickinson?

During my senior year I began as a class agent. I continued on as an agent then reunion volunteer and eventually started a regional club when I moved to a new city.

As a student caller in the phonathon I recognized the importance of having strong volunteers and class participation so being a class agent seemed like a natural extension of what I was doing before.

Outside of Dickinson I volunteer at a food pantry, serve as a youth mentor, and advise a non-profit board on programming and strategic planning. At Dickinson, I currently serve on the Alumni Council and have been a class agent, reunion volunteer, DAVS member and was a non-trustee member of a Board of Trustees ad-hoc committee.

Working with other alumni volunteers who share a genuine passion for the college is exciting and keeps me involved in an ongoing basis. If you’re doing something you love it doesn’t seem like work!

I’ve been to 11 consecutive commencement ceremonies!

Don’t be afraid. Pick an opportunity that seems interesting and try it out. Ask other alumni about their experience. Eventually you’ll find the best option suited for you.

Volunteerism has always been a major part of my life prior to Dickinson, at Dickinson, and now as an engaged alumnus. I volunteer for the college because I’m grateful for the amazing social and cultural experiences I had and the ways in which these experienced shape who I am today. Also, the wonderful faculty, some who I now call friends, played a pivotal role in my development. All in all, I gained so much from Dickinson that I feel it’s my duty to give back something. I enjoy being a volunteer so often times it never seems like extra work!

I strongly believe in being philanthropic. Institutions can’t thrive without consistent financial support thus I support Dickinson annually and have made provisions for the college in my will (that's decades away but it’s a great way to leave a legacy).